The ASEAN Insurance Council (AIC) established a permanent Secretariat Office in Jakarta, Indonesia on September 19, a move aimed at helping the regional insurance sector and preparing for the ASE AN Economic Community by 2015.

Addressing the event, AIC Secretary General Kornelius Simannjutak said the formation of the ASE AN Economic Community will have multi-faceted impacts on the insurance sector.

Therefore, the AIC will give priority to raising awareness of challenges confronting private insurers so that they are able to move ahead in the face of regional economic shifting within the 2015 AEC framework.

Initiated by insurance associations from Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Singapore, the AIC was established on April 4, 1978 with a view to stimulating the development of ASEAN insurance sector and fostering ties among insurance companies in the region.

The AIC now groups 13 insurance associations from Brunei , Cambodia , Indonesia , Malaysia , the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.-VNA